KC Motorgroup Ltd. (KCMG) is aiming to return to the podium in Super Taikyu at round four of the 2019 season from Autopolis on 19-21 July with Matt Howson, Paul Ip and Jim Ka To.
The Honda Civic Type R TCR FK8 returns to a strong hunting ground, having been the winning vehicle at this event since the TCR class was introduced in 2017. Autopolis hosted the inaugural TCR Japan race earlier this year, in which British racer Howson took pole position and a lights-to-flag victory on board Civic Type R.
Having shown race-winning speed at the previous two Super Taikyu rounds, KCMG aims for similar performance at the five-hour race this weekend.
Howson returns to the squad following a strong Fuji 24 Hours, where his lead peaked at 80 seconds over the rest of the field. The 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 winner will hope to get a strong result after two unfortunate races, as the class championship is still up for grabs with three races remaining.
Fresh from a class podium on his TCR Japan debut at Fuji, KCMG founder Paul Ip is back behind the wheel of the #501 machine, as is Jim Ka To who skipped the 24 Hours, having been amongst the class leaders on pace earlier in the year.
Track action starts with free practice at 10:30 local time (GMT+9) on Friday 19 July and a second session at 13:45. Saturday kicks off with a further practice at 10:15 with qualifying at 13:25 local time and the five-hour race getting underway on Sunday at 11:30.
Matt Howson: “It’s been a long break since the Fuji 24 Hours where we really hit a higher gear and showed strong pace until car trouble slowed us down. We have good team knowledge of Autopolis from TCR Japan where I took a win and a second-place, and with plenty of testing we hope to hit the ground running and get the podium the team deserve.”
Jim Ka To: “I’m excited to be back behind the wheel of the Civic Type R. We’ve had some good races this season where the pace was there but things just didn’t come together, the puncture at Sugo springs to mind. Hopefully our luck will change and we can get back onto the podium.”
Paul Ip: “It’s been a season of ups and downs and we want to get back on a positive trajectory. We just need a smooth weekend without issues to unlock our full potential, like we did on our debut at Suzuka where the team scored a podium. It’s good to have Jim Ka To back with us after he missed Fuji. We’re keen to get back on the circuit together.”
For more information about KCMG please visit www.kcmg.com.hk. To keep track of all the latest updates, please like KCMG’s Facebook page or follow on Twitter and Instagram.
Who is KCMG?
KC Motorgroup Ltd (KCMG) is an international motorsport services group established in 2007 by Paul Ip. The group, with its headquarters located in Hong Kong, has operations reaching across the Asia Pacific region. KCMG operates closely with many partner companies and racing organisations around the world to provide unrivalled motorsport services, equipment, team management and quality distribution in the automotive industry. For more information on all of the team’s activities please visit www.kcmg.com.hk or email info@kcmg.com.hk.
